Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Buddleja 'Lo and Behold Blue Chip' bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Blue Chip butterfly bush, Lo & Behold Blue Chip (Buddleja davidii 'Tobudchip' (Blue Chip)).

More about buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip'

About Buddleja 'Lo and Behold Blue Chip'

Buddleja davidii 'Tobudchip' (Blue Chip) · also called Blue Chip butterfly bush, Lo & Behold Blue Chip · flowering

'Lo and Behold Blue Chip' is a dwarf, mounding butterfly bush smothered in blue-purple flowers from summer to frost. Bred to be near-sterile and non-invasive, it suits containers and small gardens and rebllooms without deadheading. Give it full sun and free-draining soil, and tidy it with a hard spring cut for the tidiest, most floriferous habit.

Plant type: flowering

Watch for — Crown rot in wet or winter-wet soil: Dwarf buddlejas are prone to crown rot in heavy, soggy ground, especially over winter. Plant in sharply drained soil or a free-draining pot.

The reasons buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' traces back to one of these, roughly in order of how common they are:

Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.
Too much nitrogen feed, driving lush foliage at the expense of flowers (very common with general or lawn feeds).
The plant has not been deadheaded, so it stops flowering once it sets seed.
Irregular watering — drought or waterlogging at the budding stage makes buds abort.
It is still too young or was checked by a transplant and is rebuilding before flowering.

Feeding buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' a high-nitrogen general feed and growing it in too little sun — you get a big leafy plant and almost no flowers.

The fix — how to get buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' to flower

Maximise sun. Give buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers.
Switch the feed. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.
Deadhead regularly. Remove spent flowers often to keep it producing more rather than stopping to set seed.
Water consistently. Keep moisture even through budding and flowering — drought-then-flood swings make buds drop.

Light and feeding do most of the heavy lifting here. Dial in the spot with the light guide for buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' and get the feeding right with the buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' fertilising schedule — the wrong feed (too much nitrogen) is one of the most common silent reasons a healthy plant makes leaves instead of flowers.

Bloom season and what to expect

Buddleja 'Lo and Behold Blue Chip' flowers across its growing season (mostly summer) and, kept fed and deadheaded, can bloom for many weeks or right up to frost.

Post-bloom care so it flowers again

Deadhead, keep feeding lightly, and many will rebloom; collect seed from the best plants at the end of the season if you want to grow them again.

For everything else this plant needs day to day, see the full buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Buddleja 'Lo and Behold Blue Chip' blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' flower?

Buddleja 'Lo and Behold Blue Chip' blooms on the season's growth given enough sun, warmth and the right feed — there is no cold or photoperiod trick, just good growing conditions and a bloom-leaning feed. The most common reason it is not happening: Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.

How do I make buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' bloom?

Give buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.

When does buddleja 'lo and behold blue chip' normally bloom?